the Gospel
Good News
The Gospel literally means “good news.” In the Bible, the gospel is the good news regarding who God is and what He accomplished in the person and work of Jesus Christ – namely our salvation. The entire Bible tells the story of the lengths that God went to in order to bring glory to Himself and save sinners. Scripture prepares us for the gospel, recalls the events of the gospel, and celebrates the triumphs of the gospel throughout its pages.
Daily Gospel
We are all about the gospel, not only for salvation but for living every single moment. We realize that the gospel is just as necessary for the new believer as someone who has walked with God for decades. The gospel is to be regarded not as elementary to our Christian walk but of “first importance” (1 Corinthians 15:1-3). Scripture says that the gospel is the “power of God” (Romans 1:16) and it affirms the reality that when we are consumed with the gospel that we are transformed by it (2 Corinthians 3:18; 4:4). We recognize the fact that we become more like Christ, grow in our love for Him, and bring Him glory as we experience the gospel in all of its fullness. We experience the gospel by daily, moment by moment, thinking about it, listening to it, speaking it, living it out, standing in it, and hoping in it. In order to experience the gospel, we must daily go to the cross and study what it proclaims about who God is, what He’s done, who we were, and what we’ve become. As we daily experience the gospel in all of its fullness we will find ourselves, our relationship with God, and our relationship with others transformed.
Jesus Christ
Who He Is
The Bible declares both the full and complete deity and humanity of Jesus Christ. Thus, Jesus Christ is one person with two distinct natures. In His deity, Jesus Christ has eternally existed as God (John 1:1-3). He is the second Person of the Triune Godhead – God the Son (Matthew 28:19). He is the Creator and Sustainer of the universe (John 1:3; 1 Corinthians 8:6; Colossians 1:16-17; Hebrews 1:2), the sovereign King of kings and Lord of lords (Revelation 19:16), Yahweh Himself (John 8:24, 58). He is thus holy, omnipotent, omniscient, and immortal. Jesus Christ in his incarnation became fully human and took on a human nature with a human will and emotions. He was born of a virgin, and lived a sinless life even though he was tempted as we are (Hebrews 4:15).
What he did
Jesus came to earth with a purpose: “To seek and save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). He came as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29). Jesus, by dying on the cross, endured a death that He did not deserve and became the substitutionary sacrifice in the place of wicked and guilty mankind. On the cross, Jesus took upon Himself the sin of man and endured the full weight of the wrath of God so that we might be delivered from our sins.
How We Must Respond
Jesus came as a Savior, because apart from Him there is no salvation from sin and eternal death found anywhere else. Jesus Himself said: “I am the way, the truth, and the life, no man comes to the Father but through Me” (John 14:6). Thus, Jesus was declaring that men must embrace Him as not only their Sovereign Lord but as their Savior. The Scriptures declare: “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31). Thus, God calls us to place all of our faith into the person and work of Jesus Christ in order to experience salvation. When we, through repentance, turn from our sin and place our faith in Jesus Christ, we experience salvation and are born again to a living hope that includes an eternal relationship with God Himself.
Be Saved
The Problem
The Bible declares that we need to be saved. This implies that we have a problem we need to be rescued from. Scripture is clear that our problem is sin and the consequences of sin – death. Romans 3:23 says: “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Genesis says, “the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually” (Genesis 6:5). The Bible is equally clear that the just penalty for our sin against God is death, both physical and eternal. “For the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). “But for the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death” (Revelation 21:8).
The Solution
Without God’s intervention, the situation regarding mankind’s dilemma would be hopeless. But, God who is rich in mercy and love, ordained from eternity past that He Himself would provide the solution by sending His own Son. “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). Jesus Christ, God the Son, took upon Himself the wrath of God that we rightfully deserved to endure. Isaiah says: “But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging we are healed. All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; but the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him” (Isaiah 53:5-6).
The Way
The Bible declares that the benefits of Jesus Christ’s death can only be received by faith. We are called to place all of our faith in Jesus. “Whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16). To believe in Jesus is not only to believe the truth about Him but to entrust all of yourself to Him, depending upon Him entirely, not only for your salvation but your existence. To believe in Jesus means you turn away from your sin to follow Him in faith and obedience. We would love to talk to you further about the amazing truth of Jesus and the gospel.
Gospel message of Jesus to everyone in the Castro Valley, Hayward, San Leandro, San Lorenzo, Oakland and the East Bay area community